, formerly , is a Buddhist nun, writer and activist.

Biography

Setouchi was born in Tokushima

Tokushima, Tokushima

is the capital city of Tokushima Prefecture on Shikoku island in Japan.As of May 1, 2011, the city had an estimated population of 263,372, with 114,325 households, and a population density of 1,377.25 persons per km². Its total area is 191.23 km²....

. She attended Tokyo Woman's Christian University

Tokyo Woman's Christian University

, often abbreviated to or TWCU, is a university in Tokyo Japan.-Founding:TWCU was established by Nitobe Inazō , a Japanese agricultural economist and educator, who was appointed as the first president in 1918. The first classes were held in Tsunohazu...

 and graduated with a degree in Japanese Literature

Japanese literature

Early works of Japanese literature were heavily influenced by cultural contact with China and Chinese literature, often written in Classical Chinese. Indian literature also had an influence through the diffusion of Buddhism in Japan...

. After a love affair with one of her husband's students, she left her house and got an official divorce to leave for Tōkyō and pursue a writing career.

Setouchi's first literary award reception for Kashin was criticized as pornography. Upon being awarded the Women's Literary Prize for Natsu no Owari, she proved herself as a writer. She has also received one of Japan's more prestigious literary awards, the Tanizaki Prize

Tanizaki Prize

The Tanizaki Prize , named in honor of the Japanese novelist Jun'ichirō Tanizaki, is one of Japan's most sought-after literary awards. It was established in 1965 by the publishing company Chūō Kōronsha Inc. to commemorate its 80th anniversary as a publisher...

 for her novel Hana ni Toe in 1992. In 1973 she took up Buddhist vows and became a Buddhist nun at Chūsonji Temple in Hiraizumi, Iwate prefecture

Hiraizumi, Iwate

is a town located in Nishiiwai District, Iwate, Japan. It was the home of the Hiraizumi Fujiwaras for about 100 years in the late Heian era and most of the following Kamakura period. At the same time it served as the de facto capital of Oshu, an area containing nearly a third of the Japanese land...

 and received her name Jakuchō.

Setouchi is famous for translating The Tale of Genji

The Tale of Genji

is a classic work of Japanese literature attributed to the Japanese noblewoman Murasaki Shikibu in the early 11th century, around the peak of the Heian period. It is sometimes called the world's first novel, the first modern novel, the first psychological novel or the first novel still to be...

from old Japanese to modern Japanese.

Prizes

• 1962 Women's Literature Prize for Natsu no Owari
• 1992 Tanizaki Prize
  Tanizaki Prize
  The Tanizaki Prize , named in honor of the Japanese novelist Jun'ichirō Tanizaki, is one of Japan's most sought-after literary awards. It was established in 1965 by the publishing company Chūō Kōronsha Inc. to commemorate its 80th anniversary as a publisher...
  
   for Hana ni Toe
• 2001 Noma Prize
  Noma Prize
  The Noma Prizes were established by Shoichi Noma, or in his honor. More than one award is conventionally identified as the Noma Prize.Noma was the former head of Kodansha, the Japanese publishing and bookselling company...
  
  in literature for Basho